A'ja Wilson Helps Aces Make History By Snapping Brutal Becky Hammon WNBA Streak

Becky Hammon's Game 3 hex might finally be a thing of the past.

Despite guiding the team to two WNBA titles, the Las Vegas Aces head coach hadn't come out on the winning end in the third game of a playoff series. That changed Wednesday when the Aces edged past the Phoenix Mercury 90-88 to take a 3-0 series lead.

"I mean, under Becky [Hammon], we've never won a Game 3. This was a must-win for us," Las Vegas star A'ja Wilson said, per ESPN's Kendra Andrews. "Just for that sake. I feel like my biggest mentality and the thing that I relayed to my teammates is like, we just need to win one ... win possessions, win the quarters, and then everything else will pan out."

Wilson was brilliant in Game 3. She finished with 34 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and three blocks over 38 minutes, and she knocked down the game-winning shot with less than a second on the clock. Her turnaround jumper over six-time All-Star Alyssa Thomas instantly became an iconic postseason moment.

The Aces would've still been in an advantageous position even if their bad luck in Game 3s had continued.

The Finals are increasingly coming down to the fact Las Vegas has the best player on the court (Wilson) and three stars who can help share the scoring load (Chelsea Gray, Jewell Loyd and Jackie Young). There's only so much Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts can do to scheme around that.

Wilson winning a record-setting fourth MVP cemented the fact she's on a GOAT-type trajectory. If she manages to win a third title in four years and a second Finals MVP on top of that, she'll gain more ground in the all-time legacy discussions.